Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Phoenix, AZ - Few issues in politics provide an opportunity for almost all parties interested to agree. Such is the case with the military service clause of the dream act. It is unthinkable that we, as a nation of immigrants, would not extend full citizenship to any and all qualified foreign nationals who honorably serve in any branch of the U.S. armed forces. There is no greater demonstration of fealty and genuine patriotism than risking your life in the service of your country. However, it is also unthinkable to equate honorable service in our country’s military to successfully graduating from a university. The latter is an endeavor, however noble it might seem, purely rooted in self improvement which yields no predisposition of loyalty to this country or its laws.

Therefore, it would seem that coupling these two criteria as conditions of receiving citizenship or legal status of any kind is just one more gimmick attempting to pull at the heart strings of congress while trying to legitimize a criminal act (illegal presence in the United States). Proponents of the dream act, as written in the current senate bill, would do well to honor the service of all that serve in the armed forces of our country and drop the gimmick of those who want one more way pay to get around the law.

It is a disservice to our international students who put forth the effort to come to the United States through legal channels for their education and pay out of country tuition while those here illegally get a free ride. If we are to remain a nation of laws we should not reward or encourage illegal status as access to our institutions of higher learning.